Dry suit care &maintenance.

You will find these recommendations avoid the sort

of damage we see to suits at our repair facility in Hallam.

After every dive/s: wash with fresh water,preferably warm.

Recommend using “Wetsuit / Dry suit wash” by McNett or Mirage or Land and Sea.

Wash inside only if required. (And before giving it to us for a service.)

After most dives: Clean the fabric of the zip being sure to brush in between the teeth to remove excess wax and any grit.

Every now and then. “Zip Tech” the rubber body of the zip to reduce drag on it by the slider. Repeated usage does damage the zip. Remove lose threads from its edge with sharp snipers.

At all times: Care for your zip to prevent sharp folds in the zipper that could kink and snap the Kevlar thread along the teeth.

When stowing for transport: Wrap your suit so the zipper is around the outer side of the suit this gives the zip chain a larger radius and helps to prevent kinks.

On board a dive boat: If you roll the suit down for comfort, make sure you do not sit or lean on the zip. This may kink and break the zip chain.

Whilst donning suit: Ease the zip over your larger parts, try not to put to much stress on the ends of the zip.

Zipping open/closed: If at all possible have someone else zip your zip and explain to them. To lessen strain on zip by keeping the zipper in line and being careful not to tangle under wear in zip.  Pulling your arms out: Pull the arms off by the cuffs. (Your buddy can help) Shoulder entry suits tend to break the ends of the zip as the zip is pulled inside out.

Lubricate your wrists: Pure chalk. (Perfumes will affect the “latex”) Try using personal lubricant like “K Y Jelly liquid. We have found applying “UV Tech” before a Boat dive and after the wash Latex will last much longer. Why? Latex is reactive with Fuel on the water around Boats.

Storage: Hang up… Keep away from heat like garage roofs and skylights. Keep folds to a minimum and don’t place any weight on top of suits at any time.

Enemies of suit materials: Petro-chemicals like Vaseline, Baby oil, sun crème, detergents also heat, UV light, the Velcro on BCD’s, obviously sharp points and  being borrowed by a good mate.

 Mcnett  products available from Oceansuits or your Dive Shop.